Adelson donates $16.4 million to Israeli moon mission

Casino magnate Sheldon Adelson and his wife have pledged $16.4 million to fund the Israeli SpaceIL mission to the moon.

The donation by the American Jewish couple’s Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Family Foundation was reported Thursday on the Israeli science news site, hayadan.org.il.

“Sheldon and I are thrilled to be supporting the SpaceIL association in its effort to land the first Israel spacecraft on the moon,” Miriam Adelson was quoted as saying. “As a physician and an Israel-born scientist, I am particularly proud of the positive effect this will have on a generation of young Israelis and non-Israelis,” she said.